Metal working



C- L. SPORCK May 5, 1964 METAL WORKING 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Oct. 18, 1954 May 5, 1964 3,131,662

C. L. SPORCK METAL WORKING Original Filed Oct. 18, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 (Ittorneg May 5, 1964' Original Filed Oct. 18, 1954 C. L. SPORCK METAL WORKING I5 Sheets-Sheet 5 3nnentor (Ittomeg United States Patent 3,131,662 METAL WORKING Claus L. Sporck, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The Lodge 8; Shipley Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, 21 corporation of Ohio Continuation of applicationSer. No. 462,695, Oct. 18, 1954. This application Sept. 1, 1960, Ser. No. 53,490 9 Claims. (Cl. 113-52) This invention relates to apparatus for the working of sheet metal and, in particular, relates to apparatus for supporting a roller usable, for example, in carrying out methods for sheet metal working such as disclosed in my copending application, Serial No. 407,010, now abandoned, filed January 29, 1954, and entitled Methods for Working Sheet Metal.

This application is a continuation of my copending application Serial. No. 462,695,v now abandoned, filed October 18, 1954, and entitled Metal Working.

The above referred to application discloses, interalia, a metal working method for forming hollow, generally frusto-conicalrshaped objects from sheet metal blanks by the use of a roller operating in conjunction with a mandrel. Such a method may be carried out on equipment comprising, in general, a head stock which carries and rotates a mandrel having the shape of the desired part. A blank to be worked is clamped on the mandrel by. a rotatable tail stock. A roller is adapted to be moved along the surface of the mandrel to-progressively axially displace the walls of the blank whereby to reduce the thickness and lengthen the same to desired amounts. The roller is mounted. on a support or rest which, in turn, is mounted on a carriage adapted to move on a track or bed for the required motion of the roller along the surface of the mandrel.

The present. invention is particularly concerned with the roller support or rest for such metal working equipment.

In one important aspect, the invention contemplates a roller rest which is small and compact but extremely rugged and capable of withstanding rolling pressures, for example, in the order of fifty to one hundred thousand pounds. The components of the rest are constructed to have extremely high strength characteristics yet contain a minimum of mass.

In another aspect, the invention contemplates a roller rest wherein the roller is arranged generally at a right angle to the main body of the rest whereby to provide for easy preloading of the bearings rotatably supporting the roller and to provide for the roller to be spaced away from the main body without compromising the load-carrying ability of the rest.

In another important aspect, the invention is concerned with a roller rest mounting a roller, the rotational axis of which can be tilted in a plane which is perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel or the blank. This has several important advantages, for example, in the fabrication of cup-shaped blanks as used in the method of my above referred to copending application. In addition, the tilting may be accomplished in the oscillating or vibrating sense, the rest being adaptable for that purpose. Further, the means accommodating the tilting permits the roller to be accurately oriented with respect to the rotational axis of the blank and this is important from the standpoint of precision rolling or forming operations.

Another aspect of the invention contemplates a roller rest which provides, in addition to the above-mentioned tilting, for a roller, the rotational axis of which can be moved or shifted generally in a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel or blank. This shifting in 3,131,662 Patented May 5, 1964 conjunction with the above-mentioned tilting, is important from the standpoint of accurately aligning the roller for precision forming operations.

The manner in which the roller rest is constructed and various other features thereof will be apparent from the following description and drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of the roller rest illustrating particularly how the rotational axis of the roller is oriented at right angles to the main body of the rest;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional elevational view on the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1 with a portion of the carriage and bed shown in elevation and with the swivel shaft also shown in elevation;

FIGURE 3 is in part an end elevation and in part a section looking toward the right in FIGURE 2, the section being taken as indicated by the line 33 of FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 4 is in part an end elevation and in part a section looking toward the left in FIGURE 2, the section being taken as indicated by the line 4-4 of FIG- URE 1; and

FIGURE 5 is a schematic view in plan illustrating equipment with which the roller rest is used.

A general description of a preferred embodiment of the invention follows:

As seen in FIGURE 1, a roller is designated by the numeral 2 and is supported on a shaft 4, which is mounted in swivel shaft 6. The swivel shaft comprises a generally triangular or wedge-shaped head portion 8, a tapered portion 10, and a cylindrical portion 12. As seen in FIGURE 2, the main body or frame of the rest is designated by the numeral 14 and comprises two upright portions. 16 and 18, which respectively mount the tapered portion 10 and cylindrical portion 12 of the swivel shaft. The mounting arrangement provides for adjustable angular orientation of the swivel shaft 6 in the upright portions, the degree of which may be observed by the indicia indicated at 21 in FIGURE 1. The frame is mounted on aflat base 20 in a manner to be adjustably angular- 1y shiftable with respect thereto, the amount of shift being observable by the indicia indicated by the numeral 22 on FIGURE 1.

As will be apparent from the foregoing, when the swivel shaft 6 is adjusted, the roller shaft 4 (or the rotational axis of the roller) is caused to tilt in a plane generally perpendicular to the base 20 and when the frame is adjusted, the roller shaft is caused to shift in a plane generally parallel tothe base.

The flat base 20 is supported on a carriage 24 mounted on the track or bed generally indicated by the numeral 25. The bed provides for movement of the carriage and roller rest in a direction generally indicated by the arrows 27 in FIGURE 1. This is for the purpose of causing movement of the roller along the surface of the mandrel. Further, the base 20, together with the roller rest, may be moved relative to the carriage 24 in a direction shown by the arrows 23 in FIGURE 2. This is for the purpose of adjusting or gauging the thickness of the object to be formed. The numerals 26 and 28 in FIGURE 1 respectively indicate a wiper mechanism and a gauge mechanism.

Equipment with which the roller rest is used is shown schematically in plan in FIGURE 5. A head stock is designated by the numeral 41 and a mandrel rotatably mounted on and preferably driven thereby, is designated by 43. A blank being formed is designated by 45 and is shown clamped to the mandrel by the tail stock 47. A roller which is forming or working the blank is designated by 2', the roller being mounted on the roller rest 53, which is supported on a carriage 24' slidably mounted on the bed or tracks 25. The above referred to motion of the roller rest along the bed is designated by the arrows 27' and the motion of the roller rest relative to the carriage is designated by the arrows 23'. The flat base 20 is preferably arranged so that a plane through the surface thereof is parallel to the rotational axis of the blank (or rotational axis of the mandrel). Also, the carriage 24 and rest 53 support the roller 2' so that the rotational axis of the roller can lie in a plane containing the rotational axis of the blank or mandrel. When the swivel shaft 6 is adjusted or rotated, the roller shaft 4 (or the rotational axis of the roller) tilts in a plane which is generally perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the blank or mandrel.

A detailed description of the invention follows:

As best seen in FIGURES 1 and 4, the roller shaft 4 has a tapered portion 30, which fits in the correspondingly tapered portion 32 in the wedge-shaped portion 8 of the swivel shaft 6. The interengagement of these tapered portions forms a strong and positive bearing means for the roller and its shaft and easily takes up the thrust exerted when the roller is moved along the surface of the mandrel to work the blank. The roller shaft is held in this bearing means by a clamp 34, which is disposed in a recess 36 on a bearing face 31 of the cavity 29 of the Wedge-shaped portion and held in position by a bolt 40, secured in the threaded aperture 42 of the roller shaft and by the pin 38.

The wedge-shaped portion mentioned above is a unique feature of the arrangement in that it provides a compact and very rugged mount for the roller shaft. While the cavity 29 provides for the lightening of the structure, the webs 5 and 7 maintain strength characteristics required for the high rolling pressures.

The roller 2 is rotatably mounted on the shaft 4 by the thrust bearings 33 and 35 and held against axial movement on the shaft by the nut-washer assembly 37. The shaft has an extension 39 which carries the gauge mechanism 28. It will be observed that the shaft 4 is provided with a channel 44 and the bolt 40 provided with a channel 46, both communicating with a lubrication fitting 48. The foregoing, of course, is for purposes of lubricating the roller bearings.

The upright portions 16 and 18 of the frame are joined together by web members 1717, the arrangement effectively forming a space or well designated by 19. The well accommodates certain locking means for the swivel shaft as will be explained below and further provides for the lightening of the mass of the frame without sacrificing strength.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, the upright portion 16 of the support has an aperture 49, which accommodates a bushing 51 having a generally tapered or conical surface 52. As will be apparent, this tapered section interengages the tapered section 10 of the swivel shaft. The bushing 51 has a shoulder 54 which mates with an annular ledge 56 on the upright portion 16 and is secured thereto by a plurality of bolts 58-58.

The above-mentioned tapered surfaces form a strong and positive bearing means for taking up the thrust exerted when the roller is moved to work the blank. In addition, the surface area of the bearing is relatively large and measurably aids in holding the swivel shaft against turning when the roller is working the blank in a tilted position.

The cylindrical portion 12 of the swivel shaft extends within the well 19 between the upright portions 16 and 18 and is provided with a shoulder having a plurality of threads 62, on which is threaded a nut 64 bearing on the face 66 of the bushing 51. The nut has a plurality of holes 68 which are used to hold a tool for screwing the nut tight against the bushing. It will be apparent that this arrangement prevents the swivel shaft from moving towards the right as viewed in FIGURE 2 and also assists in holding the swivel shaft against turning.

The upright portion 18 has an aperture 70 which carries 4 a bushing 72. The bushing 72 has a flange 74 which mates with a shoulder 76 on the upright portion. As seen in FIGURE 3, the flange 74 has a plurality of slots 78 through which extend the bolts 80-80. The bolts carry threads 82 which mate with the threads 84 of the holes 86. The cylindrical portion 12 of the swivel shaft has a key which is disposed in the keyway 92 of the bushing. The end of the cylindrical portion 12 is provided with a plurality of holes 94 accommodating a tool for turning the swivel shaft.

From the above description, it will be apparent that the bolts 80 may be loosened and the swivel shaft turned which, of course, causes the roller shaft and hence the roller working surface, to tilt with respect to the flat base 20. The roller shaft tilts in a plane generally perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the blank or mandrel. The indicia 21 are used for controlling the amount of tilt and are fixed in a predetermined manner with respect to the blank to be worked. Thus, the working surface of the roller may be adjusted in a desired manner with respect to the rotational axis of the blank and then locked in that position.

The flat base 20 has a circular slot 96 having an enlarged portion 98. The slot carries a plurality of bolts 100, the heads 102 of the bolts being disposed in the enlarged portion 98. The bolts extend through apertures 104 in the support 14 and carry nuts 106.

As will be apparent, when the nuts 106 are loosened, the frame may be oriented or angularly shifted with respect to the base, which will cause the roller shaft and roller working surface to shift relative to the base. The desired position of the roller surface may be controlled by the indicia 22, which are fixed or oriented in a known manner'with respect to the rotational axis of the blank to be worked. With this shifting arrangement, the roller working surface can be accurately oriented in a desired manner with respect to the rotational axis of the blank to be worked or the rotational axis of the roller adjusted with respect to the mandrel surface.

The concept of providing a tiltable roller as above described is an important feature of the invention. For example, the tilting arrangement is readily adaptable for making flat blanks into cup-shaped blanks. In my above referred to copending application, the methods disclosed contemplate the forming of a conical-shaped object by starting with a cup-shaped blank. Such cup-shaped blanks may be made, for example, by a deep-drawing operation which ordinarily requires a subsequent annealing in order to relieve stresses. In lieu of that method for making cup-shaped blanks, I have found that by starting with a fiat blank and then tilting the roller to the desired amount and moving the same along the axis of the mandrel, the flat blank can be made generally cup-shaped without any substantial displacement of metal. In this process the working surface of the roller is made to contact the blank at a point substantially outwardly from the surface of the mandrel.

The tilting of the roller as mentioned above, is useful in changing the amount of working contact between the roller working surface and blank. This will be explained with reference to FIGURE 5. A small annular section on the surface of a cone 45, to be engaged by the roller 2, can be considered as forming part of a cylinder. Also, the tip of the roller (in radial cross section) can be considered as forming part of a cylinder. With the roller and cone positioned as shown in FIGURE 5, the cylinder formed by the cone and the cylinder formed by the tip are at right angles and there is a certain amount of contact between the roller and the blank. When the roller is tilted, the two cylinders are no longer at right angles and the amount of contact is changed.

Furthermore, the arrangement is adaptable for a vibrating type of roller. By eliminating the locking means and substituting non-friction type thrust bearings for the bearing arrangement comprising tapered portion 10 and bushuse of a mandrel.

ing 51 and securing a vibrator mechanism to the cylindrical portion 12, the working surface of the roller can be made to tilt or vibrate or oscillate with respect to the base 20. The amount of tilt or vibration, of course, is small, being in the order of a few thousandths of an inch. The effect of a vibrating type of arrangement is to reduce the power requirements for working a blank as compared with power requirements of a non-vibrating arrangement, particularly where the original thickness of the blank is relatively large.

The provision for the axis of the roller shaft to be substantially at right angles to the body of the frame has several important advantages. For example, it will be noted that the arrangement provides for the working surface of the roller to be disposed at a considerable distance from the axis of the swivel shaft (or frame). Thus, a linear motion of the swivel shaft will cause a proportionately larger linear movement of the roller. Furthermore, the arrangement provides for easy preloading of the roller bearings 35 and 36 as compared to a yoke-type support for the bearings. In addition, it will be noted that the roller working surface is spaced away from the front of the main body of the rest. This is especially advantageous from the standpoint of clearance, i.e., the roller is supported by a small, strong, rugged unit which is spaced away from the surface of the formed blank as the roller is moved along the surface of the mandrel.

My copending application 407,010 referred to above, in addition to disclosing a method for forming conicalshaped objects with a roller cooperating with a mandrel, discloses a method for forming such objects without the It is pointed out that the roller rest described herein is usable with equipment for practicing such a method.

I claim:

1. In metal working machinery for axially displacing metal of a blank and having a roller and a rotatable mandrel for supporting the blank, a rest for supporting said roller to work said blank comprising: a base; a frame connected with said base for shifting motion about an axis perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel; bearing means connected with said frame; a swivel shaft mounted in said bearing means so that its axis is substantially parallel to said plane and adapted alternatively to be fixed or to be rotated with respect to said frame; means connected with said swivel shaft adapted to mount said roller whereby the rotational axis of the roller is generally transverse the axis of said swivel shaft, the swivel shaft being rotatable to a plurality of positions, in one of which the roller axis lies in said plane and in all other positions the roller axis is tilted with respect to said plane; and means on said frame and said swivel shaft to determine the degree of rotation of said swivel shaft.

2. In metal working machinery for axially displacing metal of a blank and having a roller and a rotatable mandrel for supporting the blank, a rest for supporting said roller to work said blank comprising: a frame and bearing means on the frame; a swivel shaft mounted in said bearing means so that its axis is substantially parallel to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel and adapted to be rotated in said bearing means; and a roller shaft mounted on said swivel shaft, the axis of the roller shaft being oriented generally transverse the axis of said swivel shaft, and the roller shaft being adapted to mount said roller, the swivel shaft being rotatable to a plurality of positions, in one of which the roller axis lies in said plane and in all other positions the roller axis is tilted with respect to said plane; and means on said frame and said swivel shaft to determine the degree of rotation of said swivel shaft.

3. For roller type metal working machinery, a roller rest comprising: a frame having first and second upright portions; a bushing fixedly connected with said first upright portion, the bushing having a tapered section; a

second bushing connected with said second upright portion to be alternatively fixed or angularly shiftable with respect to said second upright portion; a swivel shaft carried by said bushings, the shaft having a tapered section engaging the tapered section of first said bushing; a nut threaded on said shaft and adapted to engage first said bushing whereby to clamp said tapered sections into tight engagement; a key interconnecting said swivel shaft and said second bushing whereby to be alternatively fixed or angularly shiftable with the bushing; and a shaft for mounting a roller connected with said swivel shaft in a manner whereby the axis of the roller shaft is oriented transverse the axis of the swivel shaft.

4. A construction in accordance with claim 3 further including a flat base and connections between said base and said frame whereby the frame may be shifted with respect to the base.

5. For roller type metal working machinery, a roller rest comprising: a generally L- shaped swivel shaft having a first tapered section on the leg of the L and a second tapered section on the foot of the L the first tapered section increasing in thickness in a direction toward the intersection of the leg and the foot of the L and the second tapered section decreasing in thickness in a direction toward the intersection of the leg and the foot of the L; means to support said swivel shaft including a bearing having a tapered section cooperating with the tapered section on the leg of the L; means providing for the shaft to alternatively be fixed or be angularly oriented with respect to said support; and a shaft for supporting a roller and having a tapered section cooperating with said tapered section on the foot of the L.

6. In metal working machinery for axially displacing metal of a blank, a rotatable mandrel for supporting the blank, a roller to work the blank on the mandrel, and a roller rest comprising a base, a shaft mounting said roller, and connections between said base and said shaft providing for the shaft to be tilted in a plane generally perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel to any of a plurality of positions, in one of which the shaft axis lies in said plane containing the mandrel axis and in all the other positions the shaft axis is tilted with respect to said plane containing the mandrel axis; means to determine the degree of tilting of said shaft; and means to move said roller rest while the shaft is in any of said positions to establish working contact between the roller and the blank on the mandrel.

7. In a metal working machinery for axially displacing metal of a blank, a rotatable mandrel for supporting the blank, a roller to work the blank on the mandrel, means rotatably mounting the roller and providing for the rotational axis of the roller to be tilted in a plane transverse to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel to any of a plurality of positions, in one of which the rotational axis lies in said plane containing the mandrel axis and in all the other positions the rotational axis is tilted with respect to said plane containing the mandrel axis; and means to determine the degree of tilting of said rotational axis and said roller mounting means further including mechanism to move said roller while in any of said positions to establish working contact between the roller and the blank on the mandrel.

8. In a metal working machinery for axially displacing metal of a blank, a rotatable mandrel for supporting the blank, a roller to work the blank on the mandrel, and roller mounting mechanism for supporting the roller, the mounting mechanism including means to tilt the rotational axis of the roller in a plane perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel to any of a plurality of positions, in one of which the roller axis lies in said plane containing the mandrel axis and in all other positions the roller axis is tilted with respect to said plane containing the mandrel axis; and means to determine the degree of tilting of the roller axis.

9. In metal working machinery for axially displacing the metal of a blank, a rotational mandrel for supporting the blank, a roller to work the blank on the mandrel, a shaft mounting the roller, means mounting the shaft and providing for the shaft to be tilted in a plane generally perpendicular to a plane containing the rotational axis of the mandrel to any of a plurality of positions, in one of which the shaft axis lies in said plane containing the mandrel axis and in all the other positions the shaft axis is tilted with respect to said plane containing the mandrel axis; means to determine the degree of tilting of said shaft; and means to move said shaft while in any of said positions to establish working contact between the roller and a blank on the mandrel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 240,145 Kearns et al Apr. 12, 1881 358,438 Duff Mar. 1, 1887 557,729 Tregurtha Apr. 7, 1896 1,023,962 Rahn Apr. 23, 1912 Waite Nov. 2, Herden Sept. 30, Britt Mar. 6, Nelson Jan. 8, Otte Apr. 9, Svenson May 16, Carroll Mar. 12, Hamer June 22, Bannow July 23, Ghormley Jan. 6, Grzenkowski et a1 June 5, Kylen Sept. 11, Harless et a1 June 24,

FOREIGN PATENTS I Austria June 11,

OTHER REFERENCES Metal Spinning by Modern Methods, Machinery, No- 

1. IN METAL WORKING MACHINERY FOR AXIALLY DISPLACING METAL OF A BLANK AND HAVING A ROLLER AND A ROTATABLE MANDREL FOR SUPPORTING THE BLANK, A REST FOR SUPPORTING SAID ROLLER TO WORK SAID BLANK COMPRISING: A BASE; A FRAME CONNECTED WITH SAID BASE FOR SHIFTING MOTION ABOUT AN AXIS PERPENDICULAR TO A PLANE CONTAINING THE ROTATIONAL AXIS OF THE MANDREL; BEARING MEANS CONNECTED WITH SAID FRAME; A SWIVEL SHAFT MOUNTED IN SAID BEARING MEANS SO THAT ITS AXIS IS SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO SAID PLANE AND ADAPTED ALTERNATIVELY TO BE FIXED OR TO BE ROTATED WITH RESPECT TO SAID FRAME; MEANS CONNECTED WITH SAID SWIVEL SHAFT ADAPTED TO MOUNT SAID ROLLER WHEREBY THE ROTATIONAL AXIS OF THE ROLLER IS GENERALLY TRANSVERSE THE AXIS OF SAID SWIVEL SHAFT, THE SWIVEL SHAFT BEING ROTATABLE TO A PLURALITY OF POSITIONS, IN ONE OF WHICH THE ROLLER AXIS LIES IN SAID PLANE AND IN ALL OTHER POSITIONS THE ROLLER AXIS IS TILTED WITH RESPECT TO SAID PLANE; AND MEANS ON SAID FRAME 